WTF is going on with the world right now? The pandemic is still wreaking havoc yet technology can’t seem to take a break! Even with the semiconductor supply chain issues, the world is pushing forward by trying to integrate more with cyberspace.
Facebook changed its name to Meta, Bitcoin crossed the $60,000 mark (and then crashed to below $40,000 recently, let’s not forget that). NFT somehow became a thing, making people millions of dollars for what can only be thought of as digital Baseball Cards.
And to wrap all of it together, web3.0 is finally becoming mainstream, promising a release from the tight grip of Big Tech on our data.
It’s incredibly easy to become lost in all of this, especially for people still trying to survive the pandemic. Coupled with the increased use of the internet and social media when everyone is holed up at home, it’s no wonder so many of us are feeling like we are being left behind.
While others embark on mining cryptocurrencies and minting NFTs, some of us feel anxious. Fear that somehow, we are missing out on something amazing happening. Fear that we will become quickly outdated and unable to survive in the apparently rapidly changing world.
What is FOMO and Why do People get it?
Social media has connected us in ways we didn’t think possible before (nor did we really think we were lacking either). Being able to get daily updates on the lives of “friends” who you maybe hung out with once in a group setting, is driving life today.
But for those of us who aren’t living and traveling in a van, there is a fear that we are missing out. A fear that there are people out there, who have a roadmap to a much more rich, vibrant, and possibly lucrative, lifestyle, and that we are just letting all of it slip by.
How much do you value your current way of life? And what would you give up to get the life you "see"?
Social media isn’t the cause, it’s just the gasoline. It stems from a psychological feeling of unsatisfaction from one’s life and levels of competence and relatedness. We are inherently social beings, who want to find communities to belong to.
Once we see people who partake in a life and community that seems desirable on the surface, we develop a need to also try and emulate those actions. Unable to align one’s life to that, creates anxiety and a sense of lower self-esteem. We want to escape it, but we fail to understand what we actually want and how to get it.
FOMO for technology
Have you been in a room of technology geeks and have had no idea what people were talking about? If not, did you know that decentralized-qubit neural applications are probably going to replace your job in the near future?
If you’re intrigued, don’t be. I made all of that up. That’s the level of confusion I expect most of the uninitiated have when they hear about DAOs (decentralized autonomous organization), ERC-20, p2p networks, dApps (decentralized applications), etc.
And couple that with the power of social media to 10x the impact of any new hype or trend, and you are left with people wondering how they will ever keep up with everything.
Web 1.0, the tales of the past repeating?
When the internet first came out, it didn’t just improve on an existing paradigm, it revolutionized the world! Even though it was just basic web pages, information could now be shared globally, without having to go through the barriers associated with the physical world?
Do most of us even remember web1.0? The period lasted from 1989 to 2005, at a time when I had just gotten permission from my parents to use a limited set of websites. At that time though, maybe I was too young to understand the weight of what was going on, but I’m sure everyone else who understood it, knew.
I mean the dot-com bubble was gob-smack within the web1.0 phase. The excitement, the anticipation, but most importantly, the hype. Obviously, all companies created at that time were not equal, but the point is, the stage of the biggest transition provides the biggest opportunities for FOMO and hype to grow like wildfire.
Why it’s Pointless
Look at kids today. Well not literally, that’s a bit creepy.
Their ability to grasp new technologies is uncanny. Where adults struggle to figure out rapidly changing interfaces, kid’s have a unique reasoning ability through trial and error.
It just makes me feel that much older when I can’t immediately grasp the latest interface for Instagram, and find it tiring to figure out the workings. I’d say it’s partly that I don’t see learning it as particularly pressing. But the other part is that technology will continue to change, and keeping up with everything becomes distracting.
There’s a caveat though. There is a reason you won’t be left behind. It needs you, more than you think you need it.
Do you think the Metaverse can be built without humans actually using it? The user experience has a requirement. Any technology that wants to be ubiquitous, needs to ensure people can learn intuitively.
So why is it pointless to have FOMO? Because after the steam of hype clears, the technology will naturally begin to integrate into your life. Take bitcoin for example. Before people started being able to buy and sell on platforms like Coinbase or Robinhood, it was exclusive to those who could figure out how to set up a digital wallet.
If I still can’t get rid of it, what do i do?
Well, let’s try and see where the FOMO is actually coming from. Is it from seeing people making $$$, and living the life you think you want, or should have? Have you been lured into the false scarcity created by virtual collections of art? Or do you think you’re going to miss the opportunity like an early Apple investment?
All these paths seem to lead to the idea that what you really want is to do something. To feel some level of satisfaction from succeeding, however, you may define success. So maybe that’s where we start? What do you qualify as success, and what type of happiness will that bring you?
From there, it becomes important to be able to discern the noise and speculation from the structurally proven. Is social media the only place you hear about NFTs? It’s not that it doesn’t have valuable information, just that the mere presence and density of the exposure also acts as a false justification.
And lastly, search for the negative experiences. What have people failed to mention, and why? All of this isn’t to dissuade you, but to paint a more rich image of the actuality of the technology. Social media has rarely been a place to share vulnerabilities, especially where you feel your opinion has changed from what you believed a few days ago.
But then, move within your risk profile. You’re not going to want to “invest” in cryptocurrency if you are particularly risk-averse. With that, let time be your most precious asset. Don’t dedicate yourself to learning about new technology without bursts of exploration (check out how to over here). Be willing to drop things quickly, and move on. Technology changes quickly, so why should you act any differently?
FOMO is the same, regardless of the context. Even with technology.
It is all in service of trying to find a more rich and happy life.
It took me the longest time to distinguish happiness from comparative success. What are the happiest moments of my life? Honestly, I still don’t know. I love spending time with family, and enjoy learning and experiencing new things, but I never quite enjoy the moment. There is always something on my mind, something else that might possibly be more enjoyable. Somewhere where I might find happiness.
The trouble is when I’m looking for happiness, I never stopped to reflect on what happiness even looks like. Maybe it’s the feeling of a stress-free life or the autonomy that comes with wealth. But life always has a way of making sure your plans don’t go the way you want.
So, maybe redefine your happiness?